From the fake emperor to the concubine

The tough snake skin and strong muscles were torn apart by the violent force like rags, and the huge snake body was directly blasted into seventeen or eighteen pieces of foul-smelling flesh, which shot out in all directions like a shower of flowers.

Thick snake blood was poured like a torrential rain onto the wet rocks and moss at the bottom of the cliff.

The enormous snake head, with a severed neck, crashed heavily to the ground. In its cold, vertical pupils, an incredulous horror lingered. The huge snake mouth opened and closed in vain, struggling and twisting violently.

Wei Siling's figure appeared serenely amidst the rain of blood, untouched by any trace of dust.

She moved gracefully to the front of the struggling snake head, extended her slender, jade-like finger, and flicked it lightly on the forehead of the ferocious snake head as if she were merely flicking a dewdrop off a flower petal.

Like a ripe watermelon bursting open, the snake's head shattered instantly, red and white fragments mixed with broken bones and rotten flesh, scattering like fireworks!

Countless foul-smelling fragments and filthy blood shot towards Wei Siling, but were all blocked by an invisible yet resilient protective aura just a foot away from her body, and slid off.

Her skirt remained elegant and clean, without a trace of blood.

Witnessing this bloody yet swift scene, Zhang Yunfan's eyes twitched uncontrollably a few times.

A chill ran down his spine. He'd definitely been worrying unnecessarily. This woman's cultivation level was a whole major realm higher than his!

If Zhang Yunfan had faced that terrifying venomous snake that posed a deadly threat alone, he would probably have already become a pool of pus and blood inside the snake's belly.

In Wei Siling's hands, this ferocious Foundation Establishment demon beast was as fragile as an earthworm that could be crushed at will, and it couldn't even dirty a corner of her clothes!
Zhang Yunfan secretly rejoiced, thankful that the senior who suddenly appeared was there.

if not……

With the guardian monster vanquished, the thick, sweet-smelling poisonous fog at the bottom of the cliff completely dissipated.

Wei Siling's figure flashed and appeared in the crevice of the cliff.

Carefully parting a few poisonous plants growing alongside it, I picked out a small plant that emitted a soft, moon-white glow.

This little grass is only three inches tall, with crystal-clear leaves and clearly visible veins. Strands of pure spiritual energy linger around it, making it the rare Dawn Moon Grass.

Even if a cultivator directly ingests and refines this spiritual plant, it can instantly increase their cultivation power by several years' worth of arduous work.

If a master alchemist can be found and it is carefully refined with other precious materials, its efficacy can even be doubled! More importantly, it can effectively calm a restless mind and greatly reduce the risk of qi deviation when a cultivator is breaking through the peak of Qi Refining and attempting to break through to the Foundation Establishment stage.

Although it is only effective for cultivators at the peak of Qi Refining and the early stage of Foundation Establishment, it is still a rare treasure for Qi Refining cultivators.

“Master,” Wei Siling said, holding the Moonflower that radiated a cool moonlight, as she gracefully returned to Zhang Yunfan. A bright smile, as lovely as spring flowers, bloomed on her face, and her voice was so sweet it could melt honey: “This servant has done her duty and brought the things back for you.”

She offered the medicinal herbs with both hands, her posture respectful and submissive, as if she were not the ruthless snake-slaying demon she had just witnessed.

Even though Zhang Yunfan knew perfectly well that the woman's current submissiveness and respect were 99% due to the forced binding of the master-servant contract, and the remaining part was definitely to numb him and find an opportunity to escape or retaliate.

But looking at the stunningly beautiful woman before him, smiling radiantly and offering precious spiritual plants with both hands, with the calming and soothing fragrance of the Moonflower lingering around his nose, and feeling the submissive atmosphere she deliberately created.

Deep in my heart, an unusual warm current still surged uncontrollably, mixed with a strange sense of satisfaction as the "master".

"Thank you, young lady." Zhang Yunfan composed himself and suppressed the ripples in his heart that shouldn't have been there.

After politely thanking her, he reached out, intending to put the precious Moonflower back into his storage bag. After all, its effects on Wei Siling, who was already at the Golden Core stage, were negligible, so there was no need to be polite with her.

Just as Zhang Yunfan's fingers were about to touch the Moonflower that emitted a soft moonlight, a voice as urgent and domineering as a thunderclap suddenly came from the side and behind: "Stop right there!"

The voice was filled with undeniable domineering and greed; just hearing it made one's heart sink, and an aura of ill intent emanated from it.

Zhang Yunfan wasn't like those protagonists in storybooks who valued manners and waited for the other party to set up their stance and finish lecturing before leisurely putting away their spoils.

The moment the other party spoke, his mind had already been activated with lightning speed. His fingertips were still an inch away from the spiritual herb when the precious Dawn Moon Grass was swallowed up as if by an invisible vortex.

It vanished without a trace in a flash, landing steadily inside his hidden personal space.

Almost at the same instant the herb disappeared!

"call out!"

A piercing shriek that tore through the air ripped through the sky!

The heavy halberd, entirely black with a blade gleaming with a cold light, swept through the narrow gap of less than three feet between Zhang Yunfan and Wei Siling, carrying a violent gust of wind, like a black dragon ready to devour its prey!

The resulting gale whipped their clothes into a fluttering sound. Finally, with a deafening roar, they crashed into a solid, brown boulder in the distance!

The entire heavy blade of the halberd, along with a small portion of the shaft, was like a red-hot iron rod plunged into tallow, deeply embedded in the rock.

Only a small part of the halberd handle remained exposed, still trembling violently and humming, emitting a reluctant buzzing sound, shaking off countless pieces of gravel and dust, before finally stopping unwillingly after a while.

The next moment, heavy footsteps sounded like drumbeats.

A man of exceptionally tall and strong build, clad in heavy armor, appeared before the two like an iron tower.

With each step he took, the ground seemed to tremble slightly. His armor was extremely peculiar; it was neither the common fish-scale armor nor chainmail, but rather a seamless assembly of perfectly fitted, polished steel plates, pieced together without any gaps.

The helmet on its head was a bare, semi-circular shape, without any feathers or decorations. Combined with the rounded outline of the armor, from a distance, it looked exactly like a giant metal tortoise that walked upright and exuded a fierce aura!

Although the iron turtle's appearance was comical, the spiritual energy emanating from its body was like a tangible wave, surging and powerful, clearly indicating that it was at the Foundation Establishment stage and its strength was absolutely not to be underestimated!

Iron Turtle grinned maliciously, and with a casual wave of his thick, tree-trunk-like arm, the halberd deeply embedded in the giant rock was pulled out of the rock as if by an invisible force, sending fragments of stone flying everywhere.

The heavy, black halberd traced an arc before landing steadily in his massive hand. He hoisted the hundreds-of-pounds-weight halberd onto his shoulder with one arm, its tip pointing diagonally towards the sky, and angrily cursed at Zhang Yunfan, "Damn it! I fucking told you to wait! Are you deaf?" His fleshy face was framed by two beady green eyes filled with murderous intent.

His gaze locked onto Zhang Yunfan like a venomous snake: "Kid, if you know what's good for you, spit out that spiritual herb! If I'm in a good mood, I might take pity on you two arrogant Daoist lovers and spare your lives."

He paused, then lowered the halberd on his shoulder slightly, pointing it at Zhang Yunfan's throat. His tone suddenly turned icy: "Otherwise... hehe, don't blame me for being ruthless and sending you on your way! After you're dead, let's see what's leaking out when your personal spaces collapse!"

The power level of this Xuanzhou world is not as high as the world Zheng Yi traveled to before.

However, its application of spatial principles is quite ingenious.

Even a Qi Refining stage cultivator like Zhang Yunfan can summon a personal space.

Once a cultivator dies, the personal space they created will collapse and vanish like a fragile soap bubble.

The turbulence generated by the collapse of space will mercilessly tear most of the items stored within it to pieces, turning them into nothingness.

Only a very small number of things might pass through the spatial rift and randomly scatter to some corner of the Xuanzhou Continent.

Of course, a small number will explode directly near the place where the cultivator died.

For this reason, unless they have absolute certainty or deep-seated hatred, cultivators generally will not rashly kill their target after the target has put the treasure into their personal space, as the risk-reward ratio is too low.

"Master!" Wei Siling's voice, as sweet as honey on ice, rang out beside Zhang Yunfan, carrying an undisguised chilling killing intent: "Should I help you... get rid of this noisy and eyesore of a bastard?"

Her beautiful eyes narrowed slightly, and she looked at the iron tortoise as if she were looking at a corpse.

Her mood was absolutely terrible!
They had spent countless efforts and laid out three layers of fog before finally managing to lure out that slippery kid Zhang Yunfan.

Just as she was about to succeed, an old monster inexplicably appeared and forced her to enter into this damned master-servant contract with Zhang Yunfan.

He had just tried to use the guardian beast to get rid of Zhang Yunfan, but his little scheme was seen through by the other party.

The successive setbacks and humiliations had already built up a raging fire of anger in her heart, like a volcano about to erupt, and she was just looking for an outlet!
This reckless, foul-mouthed lump of iron practically walked right into her clutches! Perfect for venting her anger!
"Hahaha!" The iron tortoise seemed to have heard the biggest joke in the world, and threw its head back and let out a deafening burst of laughter, which caused the rocks on the cliff to fall down in a flurry.

"You two are really something else!" He pointed at Zhang Yunfan, his face full of disdain and contempt: "The man is so indecisive and long-winded, he's completely useless, not like a real man at all!"

He then looked at the murderous Wei Siling, a lewd glint in his eyes, "This woman is hot and exciting! She's got guts! I like her!"

He licked his thick lips, and the halberd on his shoulder suddenly pointed at Wei Siling: "Little beauty, what's the point of following this kind of trash? Why not follow me, your master? I guarantee you'll live a life of luxury!"

"Don't doubt my words!" Iron Turtle slammed his halberd down heavily, cracking the rocks beneath his feet, and roared menacingly, "If I'm serious, you two good-for-nothings won't even last ten breaths!"

His greedy gaze lingered on Wei Siling's alluring face and exquisite figure, attempting to seduce her with words: "Young lady, you are such a beauty."

He abruptly changed the subject, pointing at Zhang Yunfan with undisguised contempt: "Why are you so devoted to this useless piece of trash? Look at his dull-witted appearance, he doesn't look very smart at all! Not to mention his dog-shit-like talent, he's already this old and still stuck in the Qi Refining stage! He's a disgrace to cultivators!"

His spittle almost pierced through his helmet and landed on Zhang Yunfan's face.

"But you, young lady...you..." Iron Turtle subconsciously focused his mind again, trying to probe the depth of Wei Siling's cultivation.

Immediately, it was as if an invisible hand had grabbed his throat, and the flesh on his face twitched incessantly.

For Zhang Yunfan, a late-stage Foundation Establishment cultivator, probing his cultivation level was as simple as drinking water or eating.

The spiritual energy fluctuations during the Qi Refining stage are weak and complex, like fireflies in the dark, chaotic yet clear.
Indeed, a Qi Refining stage cultivator can barely be considered to have touched the threshold of cultivation, but compared with a true cultivator, they are worlds apart!
No matter how strong one becomes in the Qi Refining stage, it is still within the realm of mortal martial arts. It only means being stronger, faster, and, if lucky, able to cultivate some minor spells.

Only by entering the Foundation Establishment stage, drawing upon the spiritual energy of heaven and earth to refine oneself, and opening up the dantian and purple palace, can one truly embark on the path of cultivation, multiplying one's lifespan and beginning to manifest supernatural powers!
The difference between the two is even greater than the difference between a mortal and a pig!

But when he probed Wei Siling with his divine sense, it was as if he had stumbled into a bottomless abyss!

The woman's presence was clearly right before my eyes, yet it was elusive and uncertain, as if shrouded in an impenetrable mist.

No matter how hard he tried to activate his divine sense, it was like throwing a stone into the ocean; he couldn't fathom its depths at all. He could only vaguely sense an invisible, heart-pounding sense of oppression!
Cold sweat instantly soaked through the inner lining of the iron turtle's clothes.

There are only two possibilities for this to happen.

The first possibility is that this woman is wearing an extremely precious, top-tier magic weapon that can perfectly conceal her cultivation aura.

The second possibility... Iron Turtle's heart felt as if it were being gripped tightly by an icy hand, almost stopping its beating, something he dared not even think about.

That would naturally mean that this woman's strength far surpasses his own.
Although he hadn't personally witnessed how Wei Siling killed the guardian beast.

But he clearly saw Wei Siling holding the Xiyue Grass in both hands, presenting it to Zhang Yunfan with utmost respect and obedience, and calling him... Master?
This is ridiculous!
How could a powerful figure, whose strength might far surpass his own, bow down and become a slave to a mere Qi Refining stage cultivator, whom he considered as insignificant as an ant?

When did this world become so crazy and so unreasonable?
The initial shock and horror receded like a cold tide, replaced by a strong, unwilling self-persuasion.

Iron Turtle shook his head, which was covered by a heavy helmet, with a dull metallic clang.

Suppressing the fear in his heart, his gaze turned fierce and greedy again: "Impossible! Absolutely impossible!"

He growled in a low voice, as if trying to convince himself: "This little wench must be carrying some kind of treasure that can conceal her cultivation level! Yes! That must be it!"

He stared intently at Wei Siling, trying to find a clue in her face.

How could a true strongman willingly and humbly serve as a servant to someone far inferior in strength?
This blatantly violates the ironclad law of the cultivation world: the survival of the fittest. Where is dignity? Where is the spirit of the strong?
That just doesn't make sense! (End of Chapter)